L3 Diploma – User Skills in Cloud Systems and Services

Purpose Statement

The following page and links are designed as a purpose statement for this qualification. The page will give information to students, parents, employers and others interested in the qualification as to its purpose and key characteristics. The page will also offer any endorsements for the qualification.

Who is the qualification for?

This qualification is a general purpose IT qualification which is designed to equip students with a broad understanding of the modern world of IT. It has an overarching focus on cloud based technologies, since these are the most prevalent and evolving form at present, but also has the flexibility for students to choose from a range of optional units to satisfy their interests or curiosity in specific fields. It also includes a real-world practical project unit to allow students to explore their skills in a formal setting and to be able to network with local and national organisations in their chosen field.

What does this qualification cover?

The students will study two mandatory units, one project based unit and choose five optional units from a wide range available. These optional units can be chosen from a number of professional certifications in Web Design offered by CIW. There will then follow an external examination. The structure is as follows:

Credits

GLH/TQT

Notes

Structure

Cloud Based Services and Applications

5

50/55 hours

This is a mandatory unit which allows students to explore such issues as connectivity and needs of cloud based systems and therefore to be better able to understand them and make recommendations of how and when to deploy them. It also explores the tools used to manage systems and the issues of account management.

Cloud Based Systems and Security

5

50/55 hours

This is the second mandatory unit and extends the first unit's work by looking at issues such as management of data, including Big Data, as well as the obvious security issues around cloud based systems. learners will also explore the legal issues of this internationalisation of services.

Real World Project

1

10/11 hours

This unit gives learners the opportunity to apply some of their knowledge and skills in solving a problem for a local organisation such as a school or charity. For example, many will be considering moving their servers from the office to the cloud and will not know the implications and ramifications of this. Learners on this course should be equipped with the skills and knowledge to help them and gain real world experience as a result. This type of extended project is also well respected by University admission tutors.

Optional Units

25

250+ hours

Learners can take a minimum of five optional units from a large list of available ones to complement their areas of skill and interest. These units can complement other subject areas so they may extend their science subjects by looking at tools to analyze and present data; they might explore the use of digital tools to create images or videos for art based subjects. In most cases, cloud based applications exist for almost all optional units, thus giving a consistency to their studies.

The above coursework will constitute 30 marks towards the final grade. The external examination will award the other 70 marks and the results will be graded A*-E.

Grade

Coursework 30%

Examination 70%

Percentage of Total available marks needed

Pass E

30

20

50

D

30

25

55

C

30

30

60

B

30

40

70

A

30

45

75

A*

30

50

80

Most of the learner's lives are based on cloud based services and this will only be extended over time. Therefore, it is imperative that learners understand these services and applications, as well as appreciate the security issues involved. This broad and detailed knowledge base will serve them whether they decide to further their interest in a practical way through employment or apprenticeships, use the course to supplement their other Level 3 studies, or use it as a basis for further study at University level. The qualification offers a good mix of academic rigor and practical knowledge and experience, as well as the chance to test this out with an actual company.

The general underpinning of IT in this course, as well as the breadth available through optional units, means that this qualification will be an excellent accompaniment to any other academic studies. The scope of the qualification means that learners can use this as a support structure for any other Level 3 subjects, but also as a solid introduction to the modern developments in the field of IT.

What could this qualification lead to?

This qualification will lead to employment in any IT sector as it is broad ranging, but focuses on cloud based elements which is where most IT industries are heading. The learners will have a solid grounding in this technology, whether they decide to work in creative industries or pure IT related employment such as support and back office related posts. The optional aspects of the qualification means that learners can focus on their area of interest and this can lead to them becoming a network manager, media creation specialist or work for an Internet Service Provider as a support technician.

The qualification is a good introduction to the key areas of IT, especially with a focus on cloud computing, which means that students can easily transition into an Apprenticeship or higher and further education. The qualification has been developed with key stake-holders in both these fields to ensure that it meets both their specific needs.

The qualification is part of a progression of qualifications in IT that leads from entry level through to this Level 3. However, it is also designed to be a stand alone qualification. therefore, students can reach this qualification having progressed from KS2 with an interest in IT, or use it as a supplement to their other studies at A level or post-16 education in order to make themselves more employable or more suited to further study, for example specialising in analytical units such as databases and spreadsheet to help with studies related to the manipulation of statistics at University such as social science or pure science.